Rarely do outsiders recognize the hard work involved...
I am always surprised at how the word intelligence generates intrigue among people. Some folks see glamour, glory, an evil aura, sinister settings, sex, money and mystery in the term and all that it is and all that it means or suggests. Rarely do outsiders recognize the hard work involved in generating a first class, accurate and useful intelligence estimate. They see the final product as an aftermath, a conclusion, stark and cold detached from what they feel is all the glamour that went into its creation.
The intelligence business is not easy and is not especially glamorous. It consists of difficult work, constant review, comparison, inductive reasoning, deductive reasoning, extrapolation, and correction. The analyst is constantly involved in updates and making sense out of the irrational and finally reaching a decision on the weight of the evidence.
We should not skimp in the budgeting process when it comes to intelligence organizations
The President of the United States has a far-flung intelligence empire at his finger tips. He relies on this mechanism--this structure--to give him the latest and best view of the capabilities of potential enemies of America. He asks for and gets details and ideas from his intelligence people. And from what they pass to him and from what he gleans from their material, he makes decisions that move the nation. He decides what short term actions to take, or what planning to set in motion or long term strategies to undertake. He signals the machinery of the government to get to action, new diplomatic initiatives, economic efforts to strengthen an alliance somewhere in the world and the very serious decision to go to war when we are threatened.
Intelligence tips the scale of the decision making process and so it is in our best interest, the citizens of this country, that the president has available to him the best intelligence possible to avoid tragic and costly mistakes. We should not skimp in the budgeting process when it comes to intelligence organizations. But we must also demand good solid management and cost effective policies to conserve assets and funds. And if such policies are not operative we should relieve those responsible for the failure.
I am amazed that we have an intelligence service as good as the one that currently exists
Since the intelligence business carries so much baggage---or at least rumors of dirty baggage---dirty tricks, assassinations, subversion, sabotage, insurgencies and more, it is a hot item for review. The people on Capital Hill in Washington want a piece of this thing called intelligence. They want to know what our collection agencies are doing, how they are doing it, when and where they are doing it and is whatever they are doing the right thing to be doing?
Under near constant scrutiny, how does the government run a secret agency that is victim of all the above plus the constant review and reporting of stories some true some totally false from the press? I am amazed that we have an intelligence service as good as the one that currently exists.
I want and every citizen should want the intelligence apparatus preserved. It should be highly effective, managed by professionals, in service to the nation, using every source of information to reach sound and accurate conclusions.
At the same time I want balance. I want an intelligence apparatus that serves the nation and is partnered with the people of America. I do not want an intelligence service that victimizes our citizens or the citizens of any nation. I want a service that is designed to protect our shores, that works and teams with other agencies of government, shares information with those agencies---not a stand alone, smug, elitist group of eastern establishment intellectuals. I want balance! And, finally I want an intelligence service that uses all the disciplines of the intelligence industry from the most sophisticated technology to the down and dirty spy who is paid for spying in order to make the United States of America a safe place. I want a service that can cleanse itself with counterintelligence measures and protective shields to root out and get rid of traitors in the system. I want a purity of purpose and a pride in performance---even when we use all the tools available to us---including the dirty tools. Why---because in this era of terrorism the game is clear---the enemy is ruthless, he cuts off heads. We are not playing a game here and we must use every asset we can find to protect ourselves.
